


I'm Begging You

by Rinay_PB



Category: Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-27
Updated: 2020-06-27
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:20:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24945265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rinay_PB/pseuds/Rinay_PB
Summary: Takano has finally convinced Onodera to make him dinner. Only one problem: Onodera's cooking is as good as shit! So, he has to turn to the only person that he knows can help him practice cooking, even if the wild bear may bite his head off for it. Rated T simply for some foul language.
Relationships: Kirishima Zen/Yokozawa Takafumi, Onodera Ritsu/Takano Masamune
Comments: 5
Kudos: 66





	1. Chapter 1

Embarrassment is a natural emotion, they all say. It's normal to feel sheepish or self conscious; it's part of life. You could say Ritsu Onodera has been "blessed" with this emotion more time in his life than any other man his age should have. But, alas, none of his previous shameful experiences could compare to the moment he was currently living through at this very moment.

"So, let me get this straight." A deep, terrifying voice booms, bringing Ritsu from his deep inner thoughts and his attention back to the person standing in front of him. Large, muscular arms cross each other across a broad chest, and dark eyes narrow down at quivering brunette in front of him. "You want me to teach you to cook beef stew? For Masamune's birthday tomorrow?"

The story behind this regrettable conversation was probably even more embarrassing, something the brunette swore he would take down with him to his grave. Takano, his hard-working tyrant of a boss, has been asking Onodera to make him a meal for several months, ever since the horrifying events of the past Valentine's Day with the chocolate in the curry. Of course, Onodera refused every time, and denied his multiple offers to "personally tutor" him to cook. But a few days ago, Takano mentioned that his birthday was coming up, and that all he really wanted was to spend the entire day with the person he loves.

A.K.A., a certain green-eyed brunette subordinate of his.

Of course, the brunette couldn't deny the fact that his heart started beating really loudly when those words left the raven-haired man's lips, to the point where he could hear the loud thumping in his ears while he was trying to concentrate on work. There was no way he couldn't do something for his birthday this year, since his plan from last year failed miserably.

Onodera thinks all of this information over in his head all at once, then sucks in a breath, metaphorically swallowing the pride he had built up for the past decade. And slowly nods his head.

The darker haired man's posture grows rigid, and his eyes narrow further at the shorter man in front of him. "And why are you asking me for help? Couldn't you ask that fiance of yours?"

Onodera's comparatively smaller frame jolts at the mention of his ex-fiance An, and he swallows once more, moistening his dry throat before he tries to speak again.

"I...broke off the engagement a while ago, and I'd surely feel more awkward asking her to help me with Takano-san. You've known for a long time, a-and you know him better than I do. I-I...don't want to half ass anything this time; I want him to enjoy his birthday to the fullest, so I can't mess it up. I know you don't like me very much at all, but I really need your help with this. Please, I'm begging you."

The man nicknamed the Wild Bear runs a hand through his dark hair, letting a hearty sigh past his thin lips. He can't help but feel frustrated and relieved at the same time by the brunette's eagerness to please to please his best friend for his birthday. It made sense, when he thought about it, for the younger did admit that he loved Masamune. But, for extra precaution, Yokozawa uncrosses his arms, and slides his right hand into his pocket of his dress pants, and mutters "You love him enough to learn to cook one of his favorite meals?"

Unbelievably, Yokozawa thought in his head, Masamune was right for once. It was surprisingly quite amusing to watch to the brunette's pale cheeks grow a brilliant shade of red only at a set of spoken words, his embarrassment and flustered state clearly showing. Onodera lets his chocolate brown locks fall in front of his eyes as he casts his head downwards, giving Yokozawa yet another small nod as an answer to his question.

The taller of the two lets out yet another loud sigh, reaching his left hand to scratch the back of his head. What was the man supposed to do, say no? He told Onodera that he won't accept him if he half-assed anything regarding Masamune and his relationship, and for the situation, the brunette is doing a pretty decent job at keeping his promise. This dull pain in his chest... is this what defeat felt like?

"...Fine."

The face that was contorted in embarrassment and slight guilt soon morphs into one of confusion. Onodera tilts his head upwards, meeting Yokozawa square in the eye for the first time since the conversation had started.

"On one condition."

Onodera bolts up into a formal pose, straightening his back and his hands laying flat at his sides. "Of course! Anything!" The words flew from his lips before he could even think about it.

Yokozawa grabs his bag from the couch beside him, and then turns back to Onodera with his business face still on. He takes his time in digging in his bag and pulling his phone out, flipping it open. The brunette shifts uncomfortably from one foot to the other being in the Wild Bear's intimidating aura, while the other man calm presses the buttons on the keypad. He finally flips the phone around, and nearly shoves the screen into the brunette's face, who's skin jumps at the sudden movement.

"Her name is Hiyori." Is all Yokozawa says as Onodera steps closer, and inspects the photo on his small phone screen. Its a small girl, around the age of 10 or 11, with dirty blonde hair and large chocolate brown eyes. She's wearing a yellow apron over a pink sweater, and is in a kitchen with Yokozawa off to the side with his sleeves rolled up. The picture is from a distance in a different room, so someone else had to have taken the photo.

"Who's she?" Onodera let slip, but quickly curses under his breath and covers his mouth with both of his hands. "Sorry!" He apologizes, shaking his head slightly. "It's none of my business!"

"She's Kirishima's kid." Yokozawa snaps his phone shut, completely ignoring the brunette's apology. "I have to stay with her at Kirishima's place and watch her until he's done with work. If I'm going to be helping you out, you're going to have to help me with Hiyo."

"I'll try my best!" Onodera relaxes his position a little. "I just have a couple questions, if you're willing to answer them..."

"Everyone always does. Now hurry up and get your stuff, I'm leaving now with or without you." Yokozawa barely bids a goodbye, spinning on heel heading towards the door of the break room. Onodera is quick to follow him out, breaking into a sprint to get back to his desk.

Luckily, hell week didn't start until a few a days, so work isn't as hectic as it usually is. Though the few editors there were surprised to see a panting Onodera run into the office, and grab everything of his off the desk. The editor in chief tsks, and leans forward in his seat.

"And where do you think you're going, Onodera?" The raven-haired man crosses his arms, lowering his long legs from being crossed on top of his desk. The brunette internally sighs, and slowly turns his head toward his boss in clear irritation. What was it about this annoying man that he loved so much?

"None of your business. I'm done with my work, so I can go as I please." Onodera replies angrily as he slips his jacket on, fastening only the top three buttons.

"Sit your ass down, newbie. If you're done, then get ahead and start on the next thing. I won't allow you to waste a perfectly good work day." Takano glares over at the brunette as he hurries to shoves his work into his black work bag. Onodera's eyebrows twitch in irritation, and he steps away from his desk to face his boss.

"I complete my work in a timely manner! Now excuse me, I have an engagement I have to attend. Good work today!" The brunette calls to the rest of his coworkers, giving a shallow bow and spinning on his heel, pushing open the door to the office.

"Oi, Onodera!" Takano shouts, rising from his seat, only to watch the door shut with his brunette lover on the other side. The dark haired man lets out a loud sigh, collapsing into his computer chair. He slips the black rectangular glasses off the bridge of his nose, and begins massaging the skin there. 'That man is more trouble than he's worth.' The editor in chief decides in his head, making a note to himself to call Onodera later to find out what was so important that he had to leave so early for.

Onodera, however, had no time to think about the consequences of his actions. By sprinting down the nearly empty halls and trying not to drop his things on the way, he managed to catch up to the elevator doors just as they were sliding shut.

"Wait, hold the elevator!" The brunette managed to shout out, quickening his pace. He slips his slender fingers through the small crack, just in time before they shut completely. The doors slide open once more, and the brunette stumbles over his feet as he runs, collapsing against the back wall.

"Took you long enough. Here I was thinking you were going to chicken out on me."

Onodera finds himself glaring down at the floor, the raises his gaze to the man standing beside. The wild bear returns the green-eyed man's powerful glare for a few seconds, but then diverts his gaze up to the glowing red numbers up on the wall with a sigh.

"I know... that I've been unnecessarily hard on you, mostly for my own selfish reasons, and false accusations according to Masamune. It was wrong of me to reject you right away when I didn't know the full story of what happened. This doesn't meet that we're all buddy-buddy now, though, I just..." Yokozawa grits his teeth, almost in pain. The crease between his eyebrows deepens as he moves his gaze to the floor, then his dark eyes find Onodera's green ones. "I want to make sure that you'll truly make Masamune happy again."

It takes a few seconds for the sentence Yokozawa barely whispered to register into the brunette's head, maybe because he wasn't always the brightest crayon in the box. But, when the message did make it to his brain, his cheeks flush a deep red, and he averts his eyes to the elevator doors.

"T-to be perfectly honest, I don't think I can make Takano-san happy."

Yokozawa furrows his thick eyebrows, and turns his hard glare over to the brunette. However, the angry bear finds his eyes softening a touchat the sight of the man beside him, who had built a large pride, and at the same time having his walls torn down brick by brick.

"I also honestly don't know why Takano is attracted to me in the first place." The brunette goes on to explain, not looking the dark-haired man i the eye. "I'm a complicated, try hard idiot that flusters easily and has major trust issues. I jump headfirst into problems without thinking about the consequences, and people get hurt because of it. All the while, the self conciousness that he caused so long ago is keeping me from being able to tell him my feelings, in fear of being rejected again. The reason he says he loves me: I have no clue, and I'm too scared to ask and get an honest answer from him. I don't think I can satisfy him the way and he wants me to."

"Wait.." Yokozawa trails off, scratching his chin a little in thought. "What do you mean... 'rejected again'?"

Onodera flinches at the last two words, physically wincing at the painful strike in his chest. Wrapping his arms around his torso, the brunette bites his lip and looks up at the red numbers, just as they reach one. "Makes sense," The green-eyed editor murmurs to mostly himself, tightening his hold on his bag as he steps off the elevator. "Takano wouldn't tell you something like that." The darker-eyed salesman follows at a quicker pace after the other, his face contorted in confusion and irritation.

"The hell do you mean? Rejected by Masamune again? He's been thinking about nothing but you for the past 10 years and-" Yokozawa begins interrogating Onodera as he rushes after the latter, before he is cut off.

"Thank you, but I don't want to talk about it right now." Yokozawa turns to object as Onodera says this, but stops when Onodera's green eyes turn dark, and he leans his head forward so his eyes aren't visible hidden by his bangs. "Maybe later, since you already know most of the story, and it wouldn't hurt for you to get the rest of it."

"...Right. We'll talk about it we're finished with the job at hand." Yokozawa decides, slowing his pace to walk at the brunette's side. "So...you said you had questions?"

"Oh, right!" Onodera perks up, eager for the subject change. "Why are you watching Kirishima's daughter anyways?"

Yokozawa furrows his eyebrows in thought, putting his index finger up to his chin. "Well... I'm in debt to him, for a number of reasons. And Hiyo has got me wrapped around her little finger, she's imposssible to deny when she gives you those giant puppy eyes, so I've been going to see her after work.

"That's...really nice of you. No wonder Sorata and Takano-san trust you so much. I guess that's where I fall short, huh?" Onodera chuckles slightly, thinking back to when he woke up in the hospital for sleep deprivation, not eating, and overwork. "I can't even take care of myself properly, Takano-san has to force me to eat with him every morning."

"I suppose..." The darker haired one grumbles, raising his gaze up to the magenta tainted sky. It was a bit strange, being able to see the sun on hus way home after getting so used to leaving his office at unthinkable times in the morning, just to wake up 6 hours later and do the same thing over again. Maybe it was like Onodera said, being able to take care of yourself and others while in this field of work was quite the difficult task, maybe even as far as a talent of his. The wild bear finds his eyes returning to the brunette beside him, who was glaring down at his ringing phone that he had retrieved from his bag.

"A-ano, Yokozawa-san..." Onodera begins nervously, turning toward the taller man beside him. "It's my mother, do you mind if I...?"

"Oh, no, go ahead." Yokozawa shakes his hand, then buries it into the pocket of his long coat. Onodera nods once, then jabs the accept button on his phone keypad, then holds it up to his ear. He soon regrets it. and pulls the phone away from his ear, physically wincing at the loud volume.

"Ritsu! How dare you ignore my calls?! I've been calling you call day!" The woman on the line, Onodera's mother, screams so loud that Yokozawa was able to hear what she was saying.

"Mother!" The brunette objects, returning the device to his left ear. "Could you quiet down?! I was at work, I'm not allowed to take personal calls! What is it that you needed to call me so many times for?!"

"I have a marriage confrence set up for-"

Yokozawa wasn't able to hear the rest of what she was saying, due to as soon as the word 'marriage' was said, Onodera scrunches up his nose and pulls the phone away from his ear, pressing the large red button and snapping his phone shut. The brunette shoves his phone back into his bag, ignoring the buzzing sounds it made from inside.

"...Sounds rough." Yokozawa says after a few minutes, looking down at the young editor, who glares down at the ground.

"Yeah. but it's nothing I can't handle." Onodera mutters back, still irritated by the random call from his mother. "Did you...happen to hear all that?"

"Your mother is a loud woman." Was all Yokozawa in return, but that's all that was needed to answer his question. Onodera's shoulders quickly sink, and his head falls to hang right in front of his chest.

"She's been...trying to set me up for marriage interviews ever since An finally cancelled our engagement, no matter how matter how many times I've told the woman not to." The brunette tries to explain briefly, gripping the strap on his bag very tightly.

"Doesn't she know that you're already interested in someone?" Onodera flinches as the question exits Yokozawa's lips, and the brunette knew that this conversation would slowly go to shit. And of course, it was when the two were finally getting on somewhat good terms.

"I...may have...forgotten...to mention that fact. To my mother. I know that if I did, I wouldn't hear the end of it." Onodera murmurs a response, the tone of his voice saddening as he spoke on. It was a fact no one could deny: The man Onodera loved was a man, through and through. And even if he did present Takano to his parents, they were both still men, so they couldn't get married even if they wanted to. Plus, the brunette doubted his parents or the public would appreciate the owner of a big time company to be a naive man without a wife, and being gay didn't help the situation too much. That was one of the many reasons Onodera didn't want to take over the company in the first place, on top of the fact that the editor still had a lot more to learn to prove that he could handle owning a large publishing company such as his father's.

"I guess the question I want you to ask yourself," Yokozawa starts saying, at the same time that he forcefully grabs the back of Onodera's coat, and nearly drags him around a corner towards a rather large apartment building. "...is, who's approval is more important to you? Your parents', the public's, or Masamune's?"

Onodera's eyes widen, and as Yokozawa releases his collar, he finds himself automatically tailing closely behind him like a lost puppy. What kind of a question was that? If he had a choice, the brunette would most likely say none of the above. But realistically, that was another story. Was it even possible that his parents or the public held a bigger place in his heart than Takano-san?

The two men entered the tall building after the doors slid open, and Yokozawa leads the shorter brunette over to the elevator, pressing the up button before spinning on his heel to face the person behind him.

"Do you have the ingredients with you?"

"Huh?" Onodera blinked his eyes as the random question, not understanding at first. His mouth formed an 'o' shape after a few seconds, as it dawned on him that Yokozawa was asking about the beef stew. "Oh, yes! I hid them in my work bag and brought them with me to work."

"Gross." Yokozawa wrinkles his nose, and complains about the unsanitary-ness of keeping food in the same bag that he keeps his work and ink. "Oh well, we'll have to make do. Hopefully the heat will melt away the bacteria." He continues murmuring as he spins around on his heel, just in time for the elevator doors to slide open. The two step into the empty elevator, and Yokozawa jabs the button for the doors to close, then hits the floor level where Kirishima's apartment is.

"Well excuse me, I had no other choice, or else Takano-san would see and demand that I tell him about it and threaten to give me more desk work if I don't. I don't want him to know about this in the slightest." Onodera retorts back at Yokozawa's comment, and adjusts the black bag strap on his shoulder. The taller man scoffs at the lame excuse, and crosses his arms.

"And who said I wouldn't tell Masamune? Or Kirishima?"

Onodera's eye grow wider than saucers, and he slowly transfers his gaze up to the dark haired man salesman beside him. "Please don't tell Takano-san about today! If he found out, he'd never let me live it down! I already have too many things he won't forget that he keeps using against me! I'm begging you, don't tell him!"

"Whatever." Yokozawa quickly dismisses the brunette's plea, and steps off the elevator through the doors that the young editor didn't notice had opened. He jogs out after the tall, and halts right behind him as the black-haired man stops right in front of one of the many brown doors. Yokozawa digs into his coat pocket, and the chinging of a key could be heard from inside. But, before he could pull it out from in of his pocket, the sound of locks being undone could be heard coming from inside, and before Onodera could prepare himself, the wooden door swung open and a head popped out.

It was the girl from the picture on Yokozawa's phone, this time dressed in a thick white sweater and pick overall shorts, her hair pulled back into a high ponytail with a hot pink scrunchie. Her brown eyes raise up Yokozawa's body in a split second, and her smile grows as she reaches his eyes.

"Yokozawa-nii! You're here so early! I just got back from a friend's house, she let me hang out with her for a while after school and..." She trails off as her eyes stray to the brunette man standing behind Yokozawa, who steps aside to properly introduce the two.

"This is Onodera-san, he's going to help me watch you until your dad gets home, so I can teach him to cook beef stew. Onodera, this is Hiyori, as I had said before, Kirishima's kid."

"Hi, Hiyori-chan. I've heard really good things about you." Onodera tries to smile, and softly waves at the girl before him. Hiyori smiles back, and turns fully towards the brunette.

"Oh, so you're Yokozawa-nii's friend! Nice to meet you, Onodera-san! Please, come in and take your shoes off, the kitchen's all yours!" Hiyori takes a few steps backward into the apartment, making enough room for both men to enter into the gekan. Yokozawa enters first, and motions for Onodera to follow and shut the door behind him.

"Sorry for the intrusion." Onodera smiles warmly at Hiyo, then bends over to wrestle his feet out of his shoes.

"It's no problem! It's funny, I was just thinking of you, Yokozawa-nii. Oh! That reminds me! Dad got me a new apron yesterday, I wanna help you guys out!"

Yokozawa smiles for a brief second, and steps fully into the house as soon as his shoes were off, resting his giant bear hand onto her head. "Sure, Hiyo. Get the aprons out, if you will, please. Me and Onodera will be there quick, don't forget to wash your hands.

"Hai! And welcome to our home, Onodera-nii!" Hiyori cheers happily and waves at the brunette, then spins on her heel and runs inside and around a corner to the kitchen. Onodera finally slips both of his shoes off, and looks over in the direction that the 10-year old girl had run off in.

"She's sweet. Is she always home alone before you get here?"Onodera had let his thoughts slip out of his mouth again, but this time he didn't freak out, but turned to Yokozawa with a questioning facial expression, actually expecting an answer this time. Well, after all, Yokozawa had kind of given him the permission to ask whatever he wanted about Hiyori, in return for more in tell of what was going on between his best friend and the brunette in front of him.

"First off, of course, she's sweet. I helped raise her."

What?


	2. I'm Begging You

Without a doubt, Takano Masamune was beyond irritated to no end. It was already midnight, and the editor-in-chief was pacing back and forth in the dark, his cell phone clutched in his large hand. Not only had Onodera left work early without a proper explanation, but he wasn't answering his phone either. Takano grits his teeth, and hits the next contact on his list. Last time he checked, Onodera had followed Yokozawa into the break room, maybe Takafumi had said something stupid again.

The black-haired man presses the phone to his ear, and lets himself fall backwards onto the couch as the phone rang.

"Moshi moshi?"

"Yokozawa, did you say anything to Onodera again?" Takano wastes no time in getting straight to the point. He hears a loud sigh from the other end, then muted footsteps of him walking into a nother room.

"I had nothing I would have to say to Onodera. Why?"

"He left right after talking to you at work, and hasn't come home yet. He won't answer his phone either."

There is a long string of silence, before there is another hearty sigh, and Yokozawa speaks again. "I can't tell you where he is, but he'll be back at home tomorrow bright and early. Remember to finish your work properly before tomorrow, we're going out for drinks."

"Yokozawa-"

"I have to go now. 'Night."

"Hey-" Takano yells, but the other man hangs up, leaving the ringing sound in his ear.

Yokozawa grits his teeth, and tosses his phone onto the couch beside him. Just what the hell was he doing, covering up for Onodera? An interrogation tomorrow is now to be expected. Maybe he should have said no to that damned brunette. Yokozawa wanders back into the kitchen while rolling up the sleeves of his dress shirt to his elbows. Onodera whirls around to face him, a brown apron tied around his waist.

"You owe me." Yokozawa lets the brunette know, grabbing the white apron left by Hiyori on the counter, the ten-year old currently using the bathroom after two straight hours of Onodera practicing using the stove. "Masamune just called me, asking where you are."

"Crap!" Onodera jolts, and reaches into his back pocket, where he had temporarily moved his phone. He pulls it out, quickly flipping it open and gaping at the blinking message on his home screen.

'67 unread messages. 9 missed calls from: Takano-san'

"Just don't respond to them, if you don't want him to find out that badly. We need to finish our business here, Masamune can wait for now."

"...Right." Onodera nods once, then shoves his phone back into his pocket. That's when Hiyori skips into the kitchen, the yellow apron Onodera recognized from the photo on Yokozawa's phone resting on her shoulders and the ribbon tied around her waist.

"Onodera-nii! I told you to check if the pot if boiling while I was gone!" Hiyo instantly screeches, scolding the 25-year old man when she catches sight of the over-bubbling pot on the stove. She rushes over and blows on it, turning the heat off. She whips her face towards Onodera, who cowers under her intimidating brown eyes. How can someone so cute be so terrifying? "We've put on seven pots already! How do you burn the water every time?!"

"I'm sorry, I told you it was a lost cause!" Onodera covers his face with both of his hands, and sulks against the counter. For crying out loud, he was being taught and scolded by a girl less than half his age!

"You might want to try making something else, if you're this bad at making just beef stew." Yokozawa watches the brunette as he makes his comment, and the other man sputters, his eyes growing wide.

"Why would I ask for help if I did know how to cook?" Onodera begins slightly pouting.

"Onodera-nii." Hiyori turns to the brunette, a serious expression adorning her face as she deadpans. "This is only the first step. All you do is turn the stove on and wait until it starts bubbling. Seriously, a child 20 years younger than you could at least do that much."

"You guys are not helping! I know that it's a failure! I'll just have to buy beer or something, a lax afternoon drinking-" Onodera rambles on, slowly waling away from the counter towards the gekan as to try to leave, but he gets cut off as he is nearly choked to death by a sharp tug on the back of his cream colored sweater.

"Hell no, you're not giving up now. Where's the spirit I saw when you flew all the way to Hokkaido for that author's manuscript? You asked me to help, and you sure as hell are not bailing out on me now." Yokozawa nearly growls, and Onodera gulps in fear of actually being strangled by the hands of the wild bear.

"Yeah, Onodera-nii!" Hiyori cheers, pumping both of her small fists at the same time. "I wanted to make beef stew with you and Yokozawa-nii! You can't leave or give up now, we keep trying again until you learn!"

"Hiyori-chan..." Onodera trails off, looking back and forth between Hiyo's big chocolate brown eyes, and Yokozawa's hard dark eyes. The brunette' after a few moments of silence, finally sighs, closing his eyes and forming his right hand into a fist. He then spins on his heel to face the other two people, and his emerald eyes quickly fly open. Onodera pumps his fist, determination shining in his eyes.

"Alright, then! I won't give up until I get it right!"

"Yay! I'll ask Dad if you can stay over tonight!"

"I'm never going to get to sleep tonight. Oh well, let's get this over with."

"Onodera-nii! Don't set the raw meat onto the table! Put it on the glass plate, the glass plate!"

"Which one?! There are five set out on the table right now!"

"Seriously, is that even a question, Onodera?! There is already a plate with meat on it! Put it there, idiot!"

"I can't handle this!" Hiyori messes with her hair, pulling it from it's ponytail. "I'm going to clean myself off and go to bed! Onodera-nii is up to you now, Yokozawa-nii!"

"Haaah?!" Onodera and Yokozawa shout in unison, but they are ignored as Hiyori's bedroom door is slammed shut, leaving the two alone in the kitchen.

"Tch, that girl has learned too much from her dad." Yokozawa complains, placing his hands on his hips and watching as Onodera drops the raw beef pieces onto the plate. Yokozawa sputters, when he sees how small Onodera had cut the pieces, and he marches over, towering over the brunette.. "Onodera! You're supposed to be making chunks, not sprinkles! Just how in the hell are we going to make beef stew with this?!"

"Wah?!" Onodera drops the knife, and looks down at the mess he'd make, and his eyes widen at the tiny little cubes of beef. "Gomen, gomen, gomen! My mind drifted off while I was working, it won't happen again!"

"It better not happen again! Just what were you thinking about anyway?!" Yokozawa asks, then tsks, flicking one of the small pieces that was resting on the edge of the glass plate.

"...ack in highschool..."

"What?" Yokozawa hears Onodera barely whisper a few words, and the Wild Bear wipes his hands on the apron on his chest.

"I was thinking about...how it used to be in high school, is all..." Onodera murmurs, taking a small step away from the counter, and leans his back against the stove. "It's surprising, how much Takano-san has changed from back then, I guess some of that may be my fault."

Yokozawa eyes the brunette, then leans against the counter to face the younger editor. "Well? Continue flapping your lips, please do tell your story."

Onodera glares over at the dark-haired man. "Thanks." He clears his throat anyways, and crosses his arms, looking down at his sock-covered feet. "Anyways, I'm pretty sure you already know this part, but I stalked him for 4 years before I confessed to him. I was so desperate, for some sort of miracle so that he would notice me. But, every time we almost met eyes, I'd get scared and looked away."

"But everything changed that one day, when we properly met for the first time, I had just burst out and admitted my feelings for him. I wasn't expecting him to accept me, so I was really jittery and nervous every time we hung out. But, I still had fun, talking about things that we're both interested in like literature and things like that..." Onodera swallows, feeling bile rise up in his throat from bringing back painful memories. "One day after school, I went up to the library, where we would usually hang out until a teacher kicked us out. He... just burst out at me, called me disgusting and denied what I felt for him."

Yokozawa sucks in a breath, his eyes widening a substantial amount. The brunette was right, he hadn't heard the entire story from Masamune.

"One time I went over to his house," Onodera continues on with his story, wiping his wet hands on the front of the apron. "and we had sex for the first time... Back then he never really said much, especially not about what he was feeling, he tended to keep those kinds of things to himself. So, the next morning, I asked him how he felt about me, what our relationship was..."

Yokozawa stands patiently, waiting for Onodera to finish. Onodera, however, raises his gaze from the floor, and meets Yokozawa's eyes. Yokozawa's eyes widen, as he realizes that the brunette had tears rolling down his cheeks, but he kept his voice steady.

"Y-Yokozawa-san." Onodera continues, merely wiping the tears away with his sleeve, but more pool at his eyes and soak his cheeks. "Have you ever asked the most important question of your life to the love of your life, then been laughed at?"

"Kirishima, finally." Takano breathed out as he finally got a hold of the Japun editor on his cell phone, who had just exited the Marukawa building.

"Ah, Takano, I believe this is the first time you've ever called me. What brings you to my cell this early in the morning?"

"Yokozawa won't answer his phone," Takano explains, scratching his messy hair as he stretches out on his couch. "I've been trying to get a hold of him for the past 2 hours, since he's the only one that seems to know where my subordinate is. Something tells me that Yokozawa is with Onodera, from what he said the one time he picked up earlier."

"Hmm, you're after Yokozawa for Onodera-san? I don't know who or where Onodera is, but I know that Yokozawa comes to watch my girl for me until I get home. Meet me at the train station by the convenience store, I'll show you there and you can take care of your business with Yokozawa at my place before he leaves. Is that okay, Takano?"

"That's fine, thank you." Takano stands from his place on the couch, and treks over to the gekan to get his shoes. "Goodbye, then."

"Later, Bakano-cha-"

The amber-eyed man immediately hangs up on Kirishima as he hears the idiotic nickname Kirishima insisted on calling him, and shoves his phone into his coat pocket as he slips his shoes on near the door. Takano then exits his apartment, making sure to lock the door behind him on his way out. He pauses in the middle of the hallway, and his eyes can't help but drift over to the door beside his, apartment number 1202.

This was possibly the first time this had ever happened, that Yokozawa would hide something like this from him. Masamune could have sworn that last time he saw Onodera and Yokozawa communicate, it was filled with bitterness and hate, mostly from Yokozawa's side. The only reasonable explanation was that Yokozawa had said something to the brunette again, and without reassuring what the Wild Bear had said was true, Onodera assumed things and is off sulking somewhere, trying to avoid Takano. But, that still doesn't explain one piece of information: Why would Yokozawa, of all people, know where he is?

Takano jumps as the elevator dings, realizing that he had already stepped on and was at the ground floor. He jogs out of the small space and out the entrance doors to the apartment complex, turning right as that was where the nearest train station was.

This entire situation...was odd. If Onodera was off sulking someone, and Yokozawa knew where he was... Did Yokzawa send Onodera off somewhere? No, Onodera wouldn't let himself be bossed around outside of work, not even by someone like Yokozawa. Yokozawa's words run through his head again.

"I can't tell you where he is, but he'll be back at home tomorrow bright and early." What was that supposed to mean? Was Onodera with Yokozawa? What would the two of them be doing together this late at night? And, Kirishima mentioned that Yokozawa goes to his place to watch his daughter after work. It may be small chance, but he was going to take every chance that he got to figure out what was going on.

"Ah, Bakano-san! That was fast!" Takano's eyes catch a dirty blonde haired man standing a few feet away from the subway station entrance, waving with his phone in hand. Takano jogs over, a new determination taking over him with every step closer.

"Kirishima-san, I think Onodera may be at your place with Yokozawa."

"Hmm?" Kirishima raises an eyebrow, lowering his hand as the dark-haired Emerald editor-in-chief stepped closer. "With Yokozawa? Yokozawa isn't the type to bring friends anywhere, the fact that he has even one friend is a shocker."

"You're telling me, the two are barely acquaintances." Takano finds himself agreeing, but his impatience gets ahead of him. "But I have to take the chance. Do you mind if we head to your place right now?

"Sure, sure. I want to see my girl as soon as possible anyways, and I'm interested in seeing how the night plays out." Kirishima smiles to himself, turning and walking down the road to the right, with Takano walking not too far behind. "So, what's got you so interested in finding Onodera-san at this time of day?"

"Personal issues, is all I will say." Takano gives a brief answer, turning his head towards the brightly lit shops they pass by. It was obvious that Onodera would get pissed if he shared any more than that, and frankly Takano didn't want to spread his personal information all willy-nilly to his co-workers. "Onodera just left really early during the work day right after talking with Yokozawa in the break room, so I thought Yokozawa had said something cruel to him and he left. But, from from Yokozawa said over the phone, that doesn't seem the be the case."

"O~oh, that does sound interesting. It makes me wonder, if Onodera was there with Yokozawa, what they would be doing together, hmm?"

The thought send a chill up Takano's spine, and his eyes grow wide at all of the images that run through his head at once. It couldn't be... that, right? Yokozawa depises Onodera, and I'm pretty sure Yokozawa isn't the first person on Onodera's list of tolerable people. Onodera wouldn't let himself be swept away by anyone other than him... right? Takano finds himself jogging around the Japun editor-in-chief, who is confused at the sudden action.

"Keep up, old man." Is all Takano says before he sticks his tongue out briefly, and jogs a little ahead of the dirty blonde man. Kirishima chuckles at Takano's childishness, and quickens his pace just a little to keep up.

"No-ah! Now it's all over me!"

"Just get a paper towel and wipe it off for now, we can wash your clothes when we're finished."

"Hey, Yokozawa! Gently, gently! You're gonna end up ripping my shirt!"

"I wouldn't need to tug on you if you would just stay there, you just keep fumbling with it anyways. Give me it, I'll show you how it's done."

"I can do this perfectly by my self, thank you very much!"

"No you can't, and we all know it. Hand it over to me, I'll take care of it."

"I said I can do this myself! I'm here to learn in the first place, let me practice!"

"Well, then just let the pro show you how it's done first!"

"Fine then, here, Mr. Know-It-All! Show me how a pro does something like this!"

"Gladly."

...

"Y-Yokozawa-san, I don't think that you're supposed to touch it with-"

"Shut up, I know what I'm doing."

"Fine! I was just trying to help, jeez! Do whatever you want!"

Kirishima finds himself blushing slightly at the conversation that he overhears from inside his apartment, and he turns to the man beside him, who appears to be mentally burning with rage, his large [abnormal seme] hands clenched into fists at his sides as he drill holes into the wooden door with his glare. "You don't think...they're actually ..."

Takano doesn't answer, but snatches the golden key that Kirishima had in his hand and shoves it into the lock, undoing the lock and bursting into the apartment, welcoming himself inside and kicking his shoes off. Kirishima shrugs, and follows the dark-haired man in a much more calm manner, taking his shoes off and aligning Takano's alongside who's he assumed to be this Onodera's. As Takano stomps into the apartment, he can feel his hands grow hot and sweaty, and the muscles in his face begin to feel sore from him scowling so much.

However, in the kitchen, Yokozawa and Onodera are startled by the loud thumps and banging sounds coming from the gekan as they heard the door swing open. Even Hiyo, now dressed in lavender pajamas, tip-toes out of her room to see what all the fuss was about. Onodera's green eyes widen as a dark-haired man enters the apartment, a familiar jacket hugging his body. The brunette quickly realizes the identity of the person that entered, along with the sandy brown-haired man that calmly follows him in, and backs up into the sink.

"T-Takano-san?!" Onodera stutters, nearly climbing up into the sink as if to escape. Takano glares at the brunette, whom he notices is fully clothed and has a... knife in his hand?

"Good evening, Onodera-san!" Kirishima cheers, ignoring the tense atmosphere and waving at the brunette in his kitchen. "What're you two making?"

"None of your business." Yokozawa cuts in, finishing cutting the meat in his hand and dropping it onto the glass plate. "I hope you don't mind, he needed my help with something so I was going to have him come here with me to watch Hiyo."

"Nah, nah, it's alright, anyone who's a friend of Yokozawa's is a friend of mine." Kirishima smiles again, walking up to Yokozawa a throwing an arm around his shoulder. Yokozawa flinches at the contact, then scoffs, knocking the sandy-brown haired man's arm off him. Onodera watches the exchange between the two, then returns back to reality as Takano marches up to him, and grabs the brunette's forearms.

The green-eyed editor had no time to react or push him away, because he is jerked forward by a pull on both of his arms and pulled into the embrace of his boss, lips landing on his. Onodera's eyes widen, and his hands find themselves on Takano's forearms, trying with all of his might to push the older away from him, as there were two others there in the room with them. He finally gives up on pushing him away, and raises his hand up balled in a fist, bringing it down as hard as he could on top of Takano's head. The editor-in-chief jolts at the hard strike at the crown of his head, and releases the brunette, who takes a few steps away from him, heaving to get a breath.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?! Baka, Baka, Bakano!" Onodera borrows the nickname Kirishima calls him, scolding the editor-in-chief who was hunched over, massaging the aching spot on his head. Takano pauses for a moment, then stands up straight and grabs Onodera's shoulder.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing?" Takano yells back at him, and Onodera furrows his eyebrows in confusion. "Leaving as quickly as you did? Not answering my texts or calls? Then I find out that you've been here with Yokozawa of all people."

"I take offense to that." Yokozawa adds in, just to irritate his friend further, who briefly turns and glares in his direction.

"I don't have an obligation to tell you everything that I'm doing outside of work! I already promised to spend the day with you tomorrow, let me have my free time in peace!" Onodera tries to snatch his arm away from Takano, but it's to no use, as Takano tightens his grip on him.

"Do you not understand?! I was worried about you! I though Yokozawa said something to you again, and you were off somewhere sulking, or maybe even got hurt! What even in the hell are you doing with Yokozawa anyways?!"

"I still take offense, Masamune. I thought we were friends."

"Shut it. I'll have my discussion with you later."

"I-It's none of your business!" Onodera cuts Yokozawa and Takano's argument off, attempting to slap his boss's hand off of his arm. "Matter of fact, I was going to be leaving soon! So could you please do us all a favor and just go home?"

"Hell no." Takano glares down at the brunette in front of him, then his eyes trail downwards to the brown apron wrapped around him over his work clothes. Furrowing his eyebrows, the editor-in-chief transfers his eyes over to Yokozawa, who was also wearing an apron, and the smell of spiced beef. His eyes catch the pot on the, and his eyes widen. "The hell is that?"

"Noth-"

"It's beef stew, idiot." Yokozawa answers, walking towards it and shutting the heat off, lifting the lid to stir it.

"Yokozawa!" Onodera complains, tugging on the sleeve of the arm holding him against the sink.

"I never promised to keep it a secret, Onodera." Yokozawa answers the brunette, lifting the pot from the stove and putting it onto a cooling shelf on the counter. The wild bear finally lets out a sigh, and turns his dark eyes toward Takano. "Onodera asked me to help him practice making beef stew so he could make it for your birthday tomorrow, hence I brought him here to practice making beef stew. That's it, so pull the stick out of your ass, neither of us have done anything wrong."

"Oh god..." Onodera feels like throwing up, and lowers his head so his eyes aren't visible. Takano's eyes widen as Yokozawa finishes speaking, and his dark auburn eyes travel down the the brunette in front of him. The editor-in-chief finally releases Onodera's forearm, but grabs both of his wrists and pulls them towards his torso, forcing the green-eyed man to look up at him. Takano takes a deep breath, looks the brunette in the eyes, and shouts at the top of his lungs:

"Don't hide adorable shit like that from me, idiot!"


	3. I'm Begging You (end)

"Ta-ka-no-san!" Onodera's screams into the chill night air simply leave one of Masamune's ears and flitters out the other into the wind. The brunette tugs and twists at his wrist, helplessly clamped in his boss's iron-like grip. With his coat hardly on and his bag falling from his shoulder, Onodera is just short of dragged out of Kirishima's apartment building. Takano chooses to ignore Ritsu's attempts to escape, and simply marches him down the street, determined to get him back home as soon as possible, especially after what he pulled tonight.

"Takano! Let go, it hurts!" Onodera tries once more, grabbing the hand that jails his own in a feeble attempt to release it and break free. Thankfully, his grip softens, but not enough for a getaway. "Are you mad at me or something? I-"

"No." Takano cuts him off in a grunt, not daring to look behind him. "I'm not mad."

Onodera feels a pulse in his forehead as a bit of anger invades. "Then why in the hell are you-"

"Shut up. Don't say another word."

Onodera can only gasp with widened eyes, purely baffled by the sudden response that zipped past his lips.

"Excuse m-"

"Onodera," Takano finally pauses his quick stride, and turns to Onodera, stepping uncomfortably close in the middle of the sidewalk, their joined hands between their chests. Ritsu can't help the breath that leaves his lungs at the sudden invasion of his space. "Please, don't say anything more. Unless you want me to take you here and now."

Hot, redness fills his cheeks at record speed. Flustered, Onodera takes a step back, as much as he could with his wrist clamped, his emerald green eyes flying away from Masamune's in embarrassment. He tries once more to tug on his arm to free himself, but Takano stubbornly hangs on.

"O-of course not!" Onodera fully turns his body away, busying himself with adjusting his bag properly onto his shoulders, and buttoning up his coat. After the mishap with being discovered at Kirishima's place with Yokozawa, Takano rushed him out the door without giving him enough time to properly dress. He still even had on the apron, which he'll have to return to Kirishima promptly. "Just-"

Without a moment's hesitation or pausing to listen to what he had to say, Takano turns, tugging urgently on his wrist to follow straight away behind him.

Given how late it was already, there's no way the trains or buses are running, and it doesn't seem that Takano took his car over to the apartment. With his attempts at escaping going nowhere and his cries and complaints falling to deaf ears, Ritsu has no choice but to struggle to keep up. He hardly manages to trip his way down the sidewalk behind his boss, dodging gaps in the sidewalk and pedestrians passing by in the opposite direction.

"At least slow down a bit!" He whines, more to himself than to the person dragging him since he knew it would be fruitless to even try. They continue without rest down the silent early morning sidewalk, only broken by the distant calls of wild insects and the clicks of the changing street lights, until they stride within the lobby of their shared apartment building.

Ritsu is all but shoved through the elevator doors, and through his stumble manages to grab the wall just in time to prevent himself from completely toppling over. Pitifully draped across the back wall of the elevator, Ritsu glares at the culprit while he merely steps inside and presses the button for their floor.

"You're too cruel," Onodera complains, readjusting the bag on his shoulder with a heavy huff from his nose. "And impatient. I'm tired and want to sleep."

Takano turns over his wrist to glance at his watch, and in fact, it was about two-thirty in the morning already. They were lucky they had the weekend off in celebration of Masamune's birthday, or else they'd regret this late-night excursion in the morning.

Upon reaching their destined floor, Masamune surprisingly doesn't push and shove anymore, but rather gently guides Onodera by a hand on the small of his back, until the both of them come to a stop in front of Takano's apartment door. In silence, Onodera waits to the side as his boss fumbles around in his pocket for his house keys to let the two of them inside. The air between them is tense and extremely awkward, but what was he going to do about it? Say 'haha happy birthday, please don't be too rough, I'd like to walk tomorrow morning?' In silence, he simply follows the other into his apartment, keeping his eyes glued to his feet. As much as he simply wanted to retreat to his own apartment to sleep, he did promise Masamune that he'd spend his birthday with him, and technically the day had already come. At least he'd have the weekend to recover from whatever the birthday boy was planning.

As if on cue, Onodera's body is suddenly shoved against the door behind him, his bag falling to his feet and hands grip his forearms. As surprised the gesture made him, Onodera isn't shocked by the warm lips that soon fall on his own, moving quickly, they were impatient, needy, and hot. However, just as it began and he had begun to kiss back, Takano's lips retract, and the man himself pads into his apartment. Confused, Ritsu can only follow with his tail between his legs.

His boss dumps his belongings onto the couch and continues on his way into his bedroom. Onodera, suddenly brought out of his trance, grabs his discarded belongings, and brings them back towards the front door to hang properly on the hooks, along with his own jacket and bag. The apartment is eerily silent as Onodera stops to listen, and not even the bustle of Takano in the bathroom makes enough noise. It felt lonely, almost.

"Onodera. C'mere." He hears the call from the bathroom, and a hand appears from the doorway, waving him over. With some reluctance, Onodera follows the calls for him over to the bathroom, where Takano is brushing his teeth. To his surprise, Takano merely points to a cup on the counter in front of him, where a white toothbrush sits. An extra, Onodera figures, squeezing his way in next to his boss in front of the mirror.

For me?

No, it was extra. Don't think too much about it.

In complete awkward yet heavy silence, the two scrub their teeth together in front of the mirror, which was very much not the forced shared shower he expected upon approaching the bathroom. What was going on? Just a few moments ago out on the streets, Takano was so eager to get back to the apartment to have his way with him. Why were they preparing for bed like a pair of newlyweds?

Onodera chokes on the toothpaste in his mouth, spitting it into the sink as if that's what he intended to do in the first place. Newlyweds? What was he thinking? They were only brushing their teeth! It isn't romantic in the slightest!

Just as his brain tells Onodera so, he feels a hand snake around the small of his back, and it tugs him into Takano's side. It was so simple, no noticeable ulterior motive other than feeling Onodera next to him as they prepare for bed, yet Onodera's heart lurches and begins to race at Takano's touch. It was so unromantic, toothpaste and saliva filling their mouths as they clean the day's consumptions from their teeth, yet he wouldn't want to be here in this position with anyone else.

After they were both done in the bathroom- of course, Takano waited in the doorway until Onodera was finished- Takano leads the other into his bedroom by the small of his back once again, and once his feet hit the frame of the bed, Takano flops onto the sheets, with only the weight sheer exhaustion could administer. At the mere sight of a bed, Onodera staggers on his feet, and his shoulders sag on his frame. He was running on the exhilaration and surprise of being caught on the way home, but Ritsu is only now realizing just how tired he was, just how long he'd been on his feet from work to cooking with Yokozawa. Following suit, Onodera steps around Takano's legs hanging off the edge of the bed and falls forward to lay beside him on his stomach.

For a few pregnant moments of silence, they just remain there. Surely sweaty in their full attire from the past 16 hours, slightly hungry from a lack of nutrition since lunchtime, and both mad at each other for their actions in the past few hours. Onodera thinks to himself, Takano didn't need to go and come looking for him, he was a grown man after all, and could take care of himself. However, the issue was also on him, for losing track of time, since he did promise Masamune his birthday to spend with him. As much as he'd hate to admit it, he'd probably get worried too if Takano ran off from work as quickly as he did, then didn't show up back at home as he usually does from work.

At the thought, Onodera turns his head to the side, gazing at the man beside him, who still hadn't lifted his head from the mattress. He bites his lip, wanting to say the words, but his jaded pride causes him to hesitate. If I say it, what if he gets worked up, and wants to do it? What if he holds it against me, like Valentine's Day? What if-

"Happy birthday. Ta… Masamune."

Oh no. The words fell from his mouth before he could properly consider all of the probable outcomes. Takano hardly stirs though, his head turns to face Onodera, his tired auburn eyes slightly widened. Onodera can't help but look away from his direct gaze as he attempts to backpedal.

"I mean, it's technically your birthday now. I mean, you weren't born until later in the day so I guess it doesn't really count that much-"

"Thank you… Ritsu."

The brunette stops right in his mental track. His emerald eyes travel back to Takano, who's facial expression hasn't changed, besides the quirk of a tired smile on his lips, his eyes closed, looking almost half asleep. Just looking at him, a yawn escapes Onodera, and he nestles his head into the pillow beneath him.

"Let's make… stew tomorrow." He hears his boss murmur from beside him. His own eyelids fighting against him, the exhaustion finally catching up on him, Onodera doesn't even have enough energy to muster a response.

Soon enough, warmth surrounds him. He wasn't sure if it was a blanket, or Takano pulling him into his chest like he always does, but Onodera lets out a sigh of content. He wasn't good at romance stuff, he couldn't do the lovey-dovey shit Takano wanted out of him, and their "fuck-buddies" routine in past wasn't helping them either. This, he could work with. It felt almost natural, that they could just come home to his place and sleep without making it a big deal. The brunette shifts closer to the source of the warmth surrounding him, and his consciousness drifts to dreams, with memories of Saga-senpai's warmth.

At the ass crack of dawn, or what at least felt like it, Onodera stirs in his sleep, the bright rays of the sun piercing through his hardly open eyes. As much as he wanted to take his time waking up, he feels something suddenly shove against his back, and helpless Ritsu, tangled in the blanket, tumbles to the floor with a pathetic thump. A sharp pain raises in his lower back, and he hisses in pain, wide awake now. Onodera quickly sits up, in order to identify the culprit who had ruined his perfectly good sleep. Of course, he should have expected, his boss stands on the other side of the bed, foot raised from just having kicked him, steaming mugs occupying each of his hands.

"What do you think you're doing, Bakano-san?!" Onodera can't help but yell, untangling himself from the blanket, while keeping a hand to the pain in his back. "A simple shake awake would have sufficed!"

"I tried," He says nonchalantly, making his way back through the doorway. "I made breakfast, come out and eat with me." The door swings shut behind him with a soft click, and Onodera's hands curl up into fists in the comforter. Truth be told, he half expected something like this to happen when he agreed to spend the weekend with Takano, but that didn't make the reality suck any less.

Once he had released himself from the blanket and put it back where it belonged on the bed, Onodera trudges his way out of the room, where Takano was no doubt waiting for him to come to eat breakfast. A divine smell wafts to his nose the moment he swings the door open, and for a moment he forgot about his rude awakening and sought after whatever Takano made that smelled so good. The brunette approaches the table, where Takano sits with his back towards him, a stack of papers in front of him, a red pen twirling between his fingers, and a plate of eggs and toast that seemed to be untouched. Obviously, he was doing some catch-up work, Ritsu figures and makes his way around him in silence. He'd rather let Takano get his work done, and maybe he could eat his breakfast in reasonable silence. He could thank him for the food when he finishes.

However, once Onodera scoots the chair opposite Takano in order to sit down, the scraping of the chair's legs seemed to alert the other, whose amber eyes immediately shoot him to meet his own emerald. Somewhat embarrassed by getting caught, Onodera settles into his seat.

Once again, silence settles between the two of them. Onodera looks down at the plate before him, identical to the one in front of his boss, as well as the mug Takano had been holding moments ago, topped in black coffee. Onodera peeks once more at the man in front of him. Takano has set down his pen, removed his glasses, and a fork rests in his hand instead.

"G...Good morning. Thanks for the food." Onodera barely murmurs, promptly shoving a piece of toast into his mouth.

"Good morning." Takano says back, eating from his own plate.

Suddenly, there are a few sharp raps from the front door, followed by a ring on the intercom. "Open up, Masamune." A voice announces.

Takano groans like his life depends on it and scoots out from the table in order to stand.

"What the fuck is he doing here so early." He grumbles to himself on the way to the door. Onodera simply stays perfectly still in his seat, not daring to turn and see who it was. In reality, the same question was ringing in his head. Who would come here this early to see Takano? There was only one person he could think of, that also calls him by his first name so casually. It could only be-

"Don't just barge in here as you please." He hears footsteps come in from the doorway shortly after the door is swung open, and it clicks shut behind whoever just entered.

"I'm not here for you, idiot." The bearish voice announces, paired with the rusting and bump of shoes hitting the genkan floor. "I'm here for your dumbass boyfriend."

Onodera jolts, and whirls around at the speed of light. "I'm not his-"

"Yeah yeah, whatever." Yokozawa, clearly irritated by both of them at this point and drops a rather heavy plastic bag into the brunette's lap. "You two left so quickly last night, you forgot to take this damn thing with you." Confused, Onodera grabs hold of the bag's handles, and peers inside, where sits the pot they had used last night to make beef stew. The sight of it brought back the memory of getting caught, and everything that followed the moment his boss had practically barged in the front door on them.

"Y-Yokozawa-san." Onodera closes the bag and sets it onto the table beside his breakfast, and turns to the man beside him. "Thank you, for bringing it all this way, but you didn't have to."

"Oh, yes I did." He almost glowers at Onodera at the mere suggestion. "There is way too much for me to keep, even if I did share it with Kirishima and Hiyo, and it was all of your ingredients anyways. Just be sure to return the pot when you're finished with it, Kirishima doesn't know I brought it here. I did take some to reheat for dinner tonight, consider it a minor expense for my services."

"Of course!" Onodera rockets out of his seat, and bows shallowly towards him. "Thank you very much for helping me out. I really appreciate you taking the time to teach me-"

"Aah, shut up." The brunette feels something thump the back of his head, cutting him off. "Don't think too much about it, I had the free time." Yokozawa's gaze leaves Onodera and drifts back to Masamune, who is standing beside him, watching their interaction in silence, almost brooding with his arms crossed. He lets out a sudden sigh, and his eyes whip back to Onodera, somehow giving a softer look than when he had first arrived. "You… don't think too much about things from now on, ok?"

At first, Onodera could only just stare blankly back at Yokozawa in confusion, reeling back into his brain to figure out what the hell he could be referring to. Suddenly, it slaps him in the back of the head, the awkward conversation they had last night that resulted in him in tears, and Yokozawa desperately trying to get him to calm down. Ritsu had hoped that he would just never talk about it again, his pride as a man didn't want to acknowledge that he cried over such a thing in the presence of someone with so much authority over him. At the mere thought, Onodera's face lights up in warmth and returns his focus to the plate in front of him, his breakfast that Takano had thoughtfully made for him was growing cold.

"What…" Takano trails off in wonder, glancing between the two in pure confusion. What the hell was he talking about? That question seemed pretty personal and insightful, especially between Onodera and Yokozawa, who would probably projectile vomit before agreeing to have personal, meaningful conversations. What was Onodera not telling him?

"Onodera," Yokozawa presses, ignoring his friend beside him. "The past is the past now, you have to remember-"

"Alright, alright!" Onodera leaps from his seat and begins pushing Yokozawa back towards the door where he came from, his beet-red face still turned down to the floor, not able to look either of the people in his vicinity in the eye. "I heard! Thank you for bringing the stew Yokozawa, but we'd really better get to eating breakfast, it'll go cold after all."

"Oi-" The man being pushed tries to object but is continuously shoved backward.

"Give Hiyo my thanks, for helping me out, and please take her apron back for me!" Onodera stops once Yokozawa steps down into the genkan, and shoves the apron he had hung near the door into the other's hands. The wild bear, realizing he wasn't going to get much farther in this one-sided conversation, figures it isn't any of his concern anymore and complies by shoving his feet back into his shoes.

"Happy birthday, Masamune!" Yokozawa calls back into the apartment, fixing his jacket on his shoulders. "You… you both have a good day. Let's go out to celebrate tonight. Drinks, on me." And then he leaves.

Onodera, knowing full well what is probably going through Takano's mind based on what just occurred, takes a moment facing the door to collect himself, in preparation for the bombardment of questions that was to come. He inhales through his nose, and out through his mouth, and spins on his heel to return to the dining table. Takano, however, still hasn't moved from his standing position behind Onodera's chair, and simply watches as the brunette seats himself back in his chair, picks up the fork and continues eating, almost as if nothing happened.

"So, are you going to tell me what that was all about?"

Onodera pauses for a moment. "I… I'm not sure what you're referring to."

"Bullshit you don't!" The other shouts, circling back to his own chair, trying to get Onodera to finally look him in the eyes. "What the hell was that? What does Yokozawa know that I don't?"

"No, you know full well." Onodera murmurs, followed by a forkful of fried egg. Takano's eyebrows furrow, both in confusion and anger, and he can feel a vein moments from bursting. "Anyways," Onodera continues, placing his fork back down, and turning his full attention back to Takano, who sits expectantly in front of him with his arms crossed. "I have no obligation to tell you what Yokozawa and I have discussed in private. Can we please just get on with-"

"Fine."

Onodera freezes mid-sentence. Fine? Is that what he just heard the Great Lord Takano himself say? Fine?

Onodera stares at his boss, mind boggled and eyes wider than saucers pointed in front of him, as the culprit just continues to eat his own breakfast calmly as if he wasn't about to burst a blood vessel just seconds ago.

Fine?! He was just going to leave it at that?

"Wh… Are you sure your name is Takano Masamune?" Onodera says, almost jokingly, but only a little. He had to be an imposter.

"I…" Takano pauses for a brief moment. He lets out a sigh and continues without looking back at Onodera, simply picking at the food left on his plate. "I don't want to be mad at you. Not today."

At the mention of the day, Onodera internally gasps. What the hell was he doing? Today was Takano's birthday, and he felt like he was intentionally ticking Takano off, for what? Onodera figures it best not to press it, regret seeping into his every orifice. The grumbling appetite he had woken up with suddenly fades away, and the brunette simply stares down at what little left there is of his breakfast to eat. It's probably cold now.

"I'm… sorry." Onodera murmurs, his hands awkwardly shifting in his lap, thumbs dancing around each other.

Takano lets out a heavy and loud sigh, that is so sudden Onodera leaps in his seat. Takano turns to sit sideways in his chair, and pats his thighs. Confused, Onodera quirks an eyebrow. Takano persists, patting his thighs again.

"If you're so sorry, come get in my lap-"

"Nope, absolutely not." Onodera's answer comes swiftly and sharply, as he tries to escape the mere idea and concept, grabbing his plate to take into the kitchen and clean up after himself, but mostly as an excuse to leave. On his way out of his chair, he accidentally bumps the pot of beef stew that was still on the table, thankfully which didn't topple over which he fully expected it would. Onodera continues on his way to the sink, where he deposits his dishes and lingers for a few moments.

What the hell was going on? Why was it so extremely more awkward than it normally is between them? Was it that hard for him to just be a little softer for Takano's birthday? Onodera thinks back to his original plan for the day, that he'd surprise Takano with his favorite beef stew for dinner, and… And what?

Onodera resists the urge to slam his head into the wall beside him. He should have thought about this more carefully! Knowing Takano, he wouldn't just accept the dinner with a thank you and continue on with his merry day, after dinner he'll probably want to…

His mind trails off to the night before, when they had just fallen asleep peacefully next to each other, the both of them extremely tuckered out, even when Takano was so raring to go at it like rabbits before Onodera told him he was tired. After that, he immediately backed down.

'That was… sweet of him.' Onodera can't help but think, feeling his face grow red. To be fair, even if they did continue to do what Takano had wanted last night, it wouldn't be the first time he fell asleep midway through. The mere thought of his brightens Onodera's ears to red.

Just as his embarrassment was about to fade away, Onodera feels large hands wind themselves around his entire frame, crossing in front of his chest, as a warm kiss his pressed to the crown of his head. Almost too scared to move, Onodera stares intently at the tile in front of him, the texture suddenly very interesting to him.

"I forgot to tell you this last night," Takano murmurs from behind him, nestling his head into the crook of Onodera's neck, breathing in the intoxicating scent of him. "But thank you, for the stew. You remembered it was my favorite." Although he didn't think it possible, Onodera's cheeks blaze even hotter.

"It- It was nothing."

"To be honest," Takano settles into Onodera, leaning further onto him, pressing the both of them into the kitchen counter. "I haven't had someone make stew for me in years, not since I was a brat and my mom used to make it for me. I've made it for myself up until now, so… thank you. I'll eat it all… even if it sucks."

"Oi!" Onodera is taken out of his trance, breaking from Takano's hold and whipping around to face him, a finger already raised to his boss's face. "Couldn't you have just said thank you?! I tried really hard on it!"

"I know. Thank you." One of his hands plops on top of Onodera's head, sifting through the soft brown locks resting there. With that hand, he tugs softly on his hair, bringing Onodera's head to rest against his chest in an embrace. Once Takano wraps his arms around Onodera's waist once again, Onodera can't control the content sigh that releases from his nostrils. Somehow, in that moment, the words Yokozawa had parted with seep back into the forefront of Onodera's mind.

Don't think too much about things from now on, ok?

Slowly, Onodera returns Takano's hug, placing his hands loosely around his torso. At the unexpected gesture of affection, Masamune's amber eyes widen, and he looks down at the man in front of him, the other too embarrassed to look him in the eyes. The older manages a chuckle and decides not to tease him too much, pressing the other firmer against his chest.

The past is the past now, you have to remember that.

Onodera softly shakes his head to himself against Takano's chest. The past may be the past, but he couldn't just forget so easily. Things as they are now… it's okay. He was sure, things would get better with time. Yeah, that was it, time. That's all they needed. But, for now, this? He was just begging whatever god existed that he wouldn't have to let go too soon.

"Hey," A painful flick to the forehead interrupts his thoughts, and Onodera realizes Takano had backed away and was looking directly at him. His hooded, amber eyes flicker between his own, and a dangerous smile dances on his lips until they part. "I love you." Onodera huffs in response, cheeks bright red as he turns away in embarrassment.

'God,' Takano thinks to himself, capturing Onodera's hand with his own, bringing it to his lips to place a soft kiss. 'If you're there, I'm begging you. I beg, just let me keep him.'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Until next time, my filthy human toilets!
> 
> ~Mina

**Author's Note:**

> Until next time, my filthy human toilets~!
> 
> ~Mina


End file.
